


Hold Me Down

by littleartemis



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: M/M, Multi, Siren Rhys, Trans Rhys, positive Angel and Jack relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-14
Updated: 2017-11-29
Packaged: 2019-01-17 09:45:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,446
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12363012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littleartemis/pseuds/littleartemis
Summary: For years there's been a siren working at Hyperion right under everyone's noses. Now that he's been found out, he's been given the task of helping to train the one other siren living on Helios station; Angel. But she has other plans and Rhys has been dragged into a plot to get revenge for what happened during the Lost Legion invasion years ago.





	1. Sold My Soul To A Three Piece

**Author's Note:**

> I want to give a big thanks to the Borderlands Big Bang for supporting me during writing this even though I was unable to make the deadline, to dapperghost who helped me fix up the beginning of this fic, and to my two betas.
> 
> Other notes: Jack and Angel have a good relationship in this fic, so do Jack and Tim.

Sirens, one of the universe's biggest mysteries. There were very few things known about them — it didn’t help that they were extremely rare with only six existing at one time. To be one was to be equally desired and hunted for your power, which you may not even understand yourself.

All sirens were born female, however, there could always be an exception to that rule. Rhys Bennet wasn’t always his name, though few people knew the name he had before, and even less people knew about the tattoos which covered the left side of his body. He used make up, and even feigned an interest in sirens to cover up the fact that he was one. The only person who knew about it was his best friend in the universe; Vaughn.

That was until Jack.

The big man finding out about him being a siren had been an accident. While the cafeteria was crowded and busy no one had expected the CEO to be in the cafeteria at the time, least of all Rhys. A fight had broken out between him and Vasquez (unsurprisingly) when the larger man shoved at him. Masses of onlookers surrounding them, some drinking their expensive coffee as they waited for fists to begin flying.

His back hit the sharp edge of a planter and a glow came from his left hand, a spark shooting out at the offending man. Despite the amount of people surrounding them, knowing this would get back to Jack some how, he was tempted to use his powers to wreck Vasquez. Glowing white eyes fixed on Assquez, wanting to tell him off before he heard whistling.

Then _he_ approached and Rhys knew he was fucked.

There was a bounty on the heads of all sirens and, being one, well; Rhys knew he was screwed. He didn't exactly have time to just run and leave Helios now. "H-Handsome Jack, sir, I—"

"Well wouldya look at that," the man leaned in, taking Rhys' left arm tight in his hand, a narrow eyed look given to the company man. “You're coming to my office, I want to have a little _chat_ with you."

Rhys swallowed hard, hearing Vasquez snickering from behind the CEO. The siren nodded as he pushed himself to his feet, dusting himself off. He looked around Jack to shoot a glare Vasquez’s way, vowing to get back at the man once he had a chance. That was, if he survived this, because the rumours about how Jack handled sirens...didn’t bode well for him.

As they walked, Rhys memorized the route, taking in his surroundings. At one point he looked down a long hall, contemplating to make a run for it. He could hide out, contact Yvette, have her give him a way out.

The look on his face must've said what he was thinking as he heard Jack say, "run and I'll either kill you, or make it worse for you than it would have been had you come along."

It was enough for Rhys to jump into action, long legs taking him to Jack's side. He rubbed his upper arm with his cybernetic hand, staring at the ground.

"Hyperion tech?" The question caught him off guard, looking at Jack with questioning eyes. "Your cyberware, they Hyperion issue?"

"Yes, sir. Both my eye and arm." He figured Jack would see the eye was cybernetic too. Thinking on it, Rhys did a quick scan, unsurprised that he didn't have clearance, and what there was was—almost nothing.

"If you tried scanning me, it won't work. No one in Hyperion has high enough clearance." Now _that_ had Rhys rolling his eyes. Yet that didn’t surprise him, either, Jack was known for not trusting people. "And hacking won't work either." Now that had him curious, wanting to ask if he was so _sure_. After all, Rhys was a pretty decent hacker.

As they came to a halt in front of an elevator, Jack looked at him. "I mean it. In case you didn't do your reading, I was head of programming before I became CEO. The walls around my files are impenetrable."

_We'll see about that._

The determined look in Rhys’ eyes seemed to make Jack laugh, which only made the siren glare harder, hugging himself tight.

When they stepped into the elevator, he noticed Jack’s eyes were watching him closely, so stepped away as much as he could in the small space. He was about to ask the man _why_ he was staring like that until Jack finally spoke. “You’re a siren, aren’t you?” Rhys was about to protest before Jack raised a hand to quiet him, “I’ve seen sirens in action, but I’ve never heard of a male siren.” 

Rhys chewed thoughtfully on the inside of his mouth, trying to decide how much information he wanted to share with the other man. It was then that he undid his tie, and a couple buttons, showing the other a little bit of the tattoos which decorated the left side of his body. Along with that was the top of Rhys’ binder, a short crop top type one.

There was a hum of understanding from Jack as Rhys quickly moved to cover himself back up, leaving his tie untied. What he didn’t expect was the next thing to come out of the CEO’s mouth; “how long have you been wearing that? I’m getting the feeling it’s been for longer than recommended. You seem like the workaholic type.”

Rhys’ cheeks reddened, opening his mouth to deny it. Besides, what did it matter to Jack if he was wearing something that made him feel _comfortable in his own body_ for too long. It’s when Jack’s eyes focused on his own, seeing the almost _chastising_ look in the man’s eyes that Rhys relented, shoulders sagging as he looked away. “Fine, I have. I’ve been working long hours and don’t like going without it.” An argument Vaughn had heard plenty of times from the siren.

“You’d rather hurt yourself?” Now he just looked surprised.

“To feel comfortable in my own body? Yeah.”

Jack just grunted at that, though when Rhys looked at him...he seemed thoughtful, almost understanding. The CEO looked away as he pressed a button on the wall to send them to the man’s office. As the elevator moved, Rhys watched Jack quietly, studying his face. Admittedly, he’d idolized the man, looked up to him even. He knew Jack was dangerous however, that if he ever got his hands on a siren, it would mean certain doom for said siren.

At the same time, Rhys had never thought he’d end up _seeing_ Jack. Ever. The CEO of Hyperion was a busy man, more so than most in the company. He had better things to do than deal with middle corporate men like Rhys.

Yet here he was in an elevator with the scariest man in the galaxy and—fuck those eyes were on him again, studying him. “What section are you from?”

“Data mining, sir.”

That seemed to satisfy him as he slipped his hands into his pocket, leaning against the wall behind him. Still, the anticipation of what _could_ happen had Rhys’ heart hammering in his chest with anxiety. There were horror stories that went around of what Jack did to sirens—though he wasn’t sure he’d ever had one in his clutches. Even so just the _thought_ had him near panic.

His parents had told him to leave the moment Jack put a bounty out for sirens, to come back home, but Rhys was too damn happy to be working for Hyperion. Positive he’d be fine, after all who’d expect a _male_ siren? Who’d think there would be one working for Hyperion?

And if he kept using his powers to hide what he was from the medical staff, well even better.

“We’re here.” That brought Rhys from his thoughts, looking over at Jack before looking to the doors which were opening.

He sucked in a breath, stepping forward and out of the elevator without thinking. Rhys had never thought he’d ever even _be_ up here, let alone with Handsome Jack walking next to him toward the CEO’s office.

Yeah the reasons were kinda sucky, but he could work with that.

“Meg, filter my calls, and let me know before anyone tries to barge into my office with anything ‘important’.” His hands were raised in mock air quotes which had Rhys pulling his lips tight to keep from smiling or laughing.

“Yes, sir!”

“Thanks babe!” With that the doors opened and Rhys was greeted with a sight that had him breathless. Partly with how grand it was and partly because of how _narcissistic it was_. It shouldn’t have surprised him ‘cause of all the displays of Jack around Helios, but at the same time—

“Statues of your head? _Really_?”

“Bounty on yours.” Jack wasn’t even looking at him, striding toward his desk, but there was a hand raised with one finger gesturing for him to come forward.

“Touche.” He quickly followed, jogging up to Jack’s desk, taking in everything around him with relative awe and admiration. Since he was little he’d wanted an office like this of his own, and now it just furthered his ambitions, wanting it even more.

“You know, considering the entire siren bounty isn’t exactly something that we’re quiet about, it makes me wonder why one is working for Hyperion.” Rhys looked Jack’s way as the man spoke, watching him fall back into his seat with a raised brow, arms crossed as he almost inspected Rhys from head to toe. Like a predator sizing up it’s prey, making him _uneasy_.

Despite how it hurt, Rhys crossed his arms over his chest, shrugging. “Since I was little I’ve always wanted to run my own business, figured Hyperion was a good place to start. Atlas isn’t exactly around anymore.”

And he’d rather ask Torgue if he’s looking for help than join DAHL.

There’s a dry laugh from the older man that took Rhys by surprise, eyeing the other with obvious wariness and distrust. “C’mere kid.”

Doing as ordered, he neared Jack, making note of the gun at the man’s side. Breathing in through his nose he almost jumped at the hands that grabbed his shoulders. “Relax, would ya, kiddo? If I wanted you dead, you’d be dead already.” Their eyes met and Rhys gave him a raised brow, “I know that look, and all those stories are myths.”

Rhys seriously doubted that, though he does catch the way Jack sends a look to his desk before seeming to quickly think better about it. Something told him there was more to that than Jack was saying, but he wasn’t privy to that information. He doubted many, if any one, was.

“Now, I want you to take off your shirt.” _That_ caught him off guard, almost stepping back but Jack’s hands kept him close. “ _Calm down_. Jeez, I just want to see where the damage is. I’m guessing you haven’t seen a doctor recently, or at least aren’t listening to one.” When Rhys puffed up his cheeks childishly, Jack laughed and the sound almost melted his heart.

_God he had a nice laugh_.

“Thought so, you seemed like the stubborn type. Now come on,” Jack sat back, hands off the siren. When Rhys looked at his hands, then his face, brows knit, Jack shrugged. “I’m not gonna force ya, kitten.”

“I’m not doing it in front of you, alright. Do you have somewhere—”

Jack raised his hands, his little smile making Rhys blush. “Understandable, sorry. I got a private bathroom in here.” He stood again, guiding Rhys to where it was located. “In case you’re worried, there’s no cameras and only I got access to this. I’ll be at my desk.”

The siren looked from the bathroom door to Jack, thoughtful. He seemed genuinely concerned about Rhys which was what made him the most confused. Though thinking how he was going to be taking off his binder, the siren bit his bottom lip, knowing his dress shirt was a bit _tight_. “Uh—do you have a spare…”

There was a confused look from the other man, and Rhys tugged at his shirt. “Oh! Yeah I bet it’s—uh—kinda obvious if ya-yeah I’ll just grab you a shirt. Gimmie a sec.” Rhys nodded, standing by the door, not wanting to get halfway through and having to open the door for Jack to give him the shirt. What he didn’t expect was for the man to return with what looked to be a well worn yellow Hyperion sweater. It had patches sewn over holes and looked pretty comfy if Rhys was honest.

He had to push aside thoughts that it probably smelled like the man too.

Taking it, he murmured a thank you before retreating into the bathroom, beginning to change out of his shirt and binder. He scowled as he caught sight of himself in the mirror, but Jack was right, he had been wearing it for too long. Already he was feeling the aches and pains now that the pressure was gone. The signs of bruising, it didn’t help that he bruised like a damn peach.

Once he lifted his arms to pull the sweater over his head he cursed, the pain shooting through him. Yeah he’d need to take something for that. Maybe Jack had some of the good stuff.

Collecting his shirt, tie, and binder, Rhys exited the bathroom to find Jack at his desk as promised. The man appeared to be going over a few things on his computer, likely looking up Rhys’ files, at least that’s what the siren would be doing. But, as Jack said, their esteemed CEO was behind a lot of walls and Rhys didn’t have the time to go chipping away at it.

“How’re you feeling, kid?”

“Rhys. My name is Rhys.”

“Yeah, yeah.” There’s a hand wave and Rhys scowled. Jack’s hands lowered, which seemed to get through to him by how he blinked. Like he’d just realized he’d offended the siren. “Look, I call _everyone_ that.” Now that he thought on it, he remembered a few speeches where Jack had used things like ‘pumpkin’, ‘kiddo’, and ‘kitten’. He’d even called the woman outside his office ‘babe’.

It made him relax a little, but only a little. Anyone who’d known him before his transition had to be reminded about his new name. Vaughn at least had caught on fast and was faster to correct others who knew of Rhys’ transition.

“It’s not personal, okay?” The siren nodded, moving around Jack’s desk to join him, a little apprehensive about being this close to the CEO.

“Do you mind showing me…?” Jack’s voice was soft, it was like he was full of surprises for the siren. Rhys looked over him for a moment, before raising the bottom of the shirt that had been loaned to him to show the man a bit of the bruising. There was a sharp intake of breath from the CEO, “yeah I can’t let you leave wearing the binder, at least not in good conscience.”

“I’m surprised you even have one.”

The laugh that he earns  is just as good as the first and he watches the way Jack’s expression changes with it. “Man, you have some guts kid.”

“I’m lucky you haven’t thrown me out an airlock or strangled me. Honestly, I’m sure a smart ass remark will get me killed one day.”

“If I were not in a good mood, I’d’ve strangled you by now, yeah.”

Well that was comforting, to know that Jack probably _would have_ killed him by now. It made him wonder what had him in such a good mood, entertaining the thought that it was him, but even so it was probably the fact that he was a siren. He took a step back from Jack when a curious hand reached out, dropping the shirt. “What are you going to do with me, sir?”

Maybe if he changed the topic, it would take Jack’s attention off of Rhys’ aching body.

“Simple enough, when I put that bounty out I never expected to find a siren in my employ. Now, you’re not exactly either of those damn bandits I’m trying to get my hands on, are you kiddo?” He chewed on the inside of his mouth at the use of kiddo, but shook his head to at least let Jack know he was listening. “I’m thinking we can work _together_ . Having a siren doing what I want? Now _that’s_ an asset I’d like to have. And it would be a _major_ promotion for you, what do you say, pumpkin? Wanna help Daddy out?”

Before Rhys could answer, there was the sound of the door to the office slamming open, pushing the siren to quickly hide his binder inside his dress shirt which lay on the CEO’s desk. He looked to Jack who had pushed himself to his feet, likely to yell at whoever interrupted them, but the look on Jack’s face—

Rhys looked to the door, stilling himself as he was faced with _Jack_ standing right there. Two Jacks…? What the hell was going on?

“Timmy, baby,  _kitten_ —”

“Jack—I—”

So the one he’d been with was a body double? Rhys frowned as he neared the Jack— _Tim_ — with him. It was then he noticed the light freckles over the man’s skin, specifically near the edges of his mask. There was also no sign of an ECHOport behind Jack’s left ear. The CEO was good at hiding it, but Rhys had seen it before in some live recordings and images that were over the ECHOnet. He made sure to save them before they were removed though, as there were some images their esteemed CEO did not like getting out.

“You know, when you didn’t make it to our little meeting I figured you forgot, but then I couldn’t find you in our suite. Then I find out you’re holed up here with some cute little thing—” oh yeah, that was definitely the real deal. Rhys tried to hide himself a little behind the double, surprised when a hand reached out to _keep him hidden_.

“Jack, I can explain—”

“Well then, you better start talking kitten.” Jack, the real deal, started walking toward them with a dangerous look in his eye. There was a reassuring squeeze to Rhys’ arm from Tim, like he was trying to tell the siren that it would be okay despite the fact that the most dangerous man in the universe was staring them down. “I’m waiting.”

“He’s a siren.” Okay, that wasn’t exactly how Rhys expected this to go. He scowled, smacking Tim in the side with this cybernetic arm for effect, making the double grunt. Rhys felt a bit more willing to go after the man now that he knew he was just a body double and not the real deal.

The real deal who was now looking at Rhys very intently with narrowed eyes, making the siren shrink further behind Tim.

Despite Rhys lashing out, the double stayed firm in shielding him. “I found him when he almost used his powers in the cafeteria, okay. Plus we could use a siren on our side.”

“ _We have one_.”

“Who is untrained, and can barely control her powers. Hell, we can have Rhys train her as he seems to have more control over his own powers. Jack, I can focus on tracking you-know-who down so we don’t have to risk Angel when we get the vault key. We’ll have two sirens on our side, and you can get back at _her_ for what happened on Elpis, for almost killing both of us.” Tim moved away from Rhys, taking Jack’s face in his hands, fingers brushing over the snaps holding the man’s mask in place.

“What if—”

Tim snorted, “he’s one of your fanboys Jack, he’s not gonna betray you. He’s more likely to get on his knees and suck your dick.”

“H-hey!”

“Sorry, being around Jack so long, I sometimes get crude.”

“How d’you know he’s a fan anyway?” Jack crossed his arms over his chest, looking from siren to double. Rhys gave Tim a questioning look, wondering the same thing as his brows furrowed.

“I looked for him in the system, duh. Kid’s got one of those Handsome Jack Fan Club membership cards and everything. Was just a matter of getting the cameras to do a facial recognition thing, go through his stuff, unlock anything locked… Wait, are you asking ‘cause you think he tried to blow me?” The look on Jack’s face was enough to confirm Tim’s suspicion. “ _Jack_.”

“Uh, you guys do know I’m _right here_ right? And honestly, was too busy trying not to piss myself to think about blowing you. God, I can’t believe I said that.”

The real Jack raised an eyebrow at him, “Are you sayin’ that if you weren’t scared…?”

“ _Jack_.” Tim and Rhys spoke in unison this time, the sirens face a deep shade of red, meanwhile the body doubles ears were pinkening.

Sighing, the siren rubbed his face with his good hand, pinching the bridge of his nose. “So, about this job offer, or whatever it is—?” An attempt at changing the subject before his mind got too focused on the CEO’s dick. A place his best friend said his mind was too often.

A low growl left Jack at the reminder, “I don’t like it.”

“As I said, he’s one of the types who looks up to you. We can have him train Angel and maintaining things up here with her, while I focus on getting _her_.” Rhys wasn’t sure who this person was that Tim refused to name, but by the hints, he was guessing she was a siren like himself and this Angel.

“You know I don’t trust just anyone with Angel’s care, Tim.”

“How about this; I monitor their training for about a week or so or hey, we schedule it for only when you can watch over it. If you think anything is off, you can call the whole thing off.”

Rhys looked from Jack to his double, trying to stay still and quiet. Mainly as he was unsure if Jack would airlock him if he decided it wasn’t worth the risk. Who was Angel? He’d been a fan of Jack’s for years, since before the man was CEO of Hyperion, and he hadn’t heard of an Angel. She must be someone special if the man was so intent on her safety.

Then again, that was no surprise with her being a siren and their kind being either hunted or wanted to be used as weapons.

“Son of a taint—fine! We’ll give him a trial period ‘cause as you said having a siren on our side could be useful. I’ll monitor it, but you’re going to go right down to Pandora and see what you can dig up on that bitch. And don’t get distracted by Moxxi while you’re down there.”

“That was _one time_!”

“Yeah, and by the way I could hear you through the ECHO, and yes I heard you saying ‘marry me’.” Tim had the dignity to blush, stammering incoherently before hiding his face behind his hands as Jack grinned wolfishly. He seemed to be in a better mood now that he’d gotten the upper hand on his body double. “Anyway, Kitten, you and me have a date that you are late to. Princess,” he gestured at Rhys, “meet me here at 9am sharp. We’ll discuss this 'arrangement’ and see about you meeting Angel. Understood?”

Rhys nodded, not even complaining about the pet name Jack picked out. It seemed he had one for every situation, and made him wonder if that one would stick. “Yes sir, 9am.”

Before much more could be said, he grabbed his shirt and made for the door, cheeks hot as he clutched the front of the shirt Tim had given him. Once in the elevator he pressed the button for the employee housing, and rested his back against the wall, closing his eyes. Rhys tried his best not to think about how Tim’s hands had felt, or how the man’s shirt smelt like him.


	2. He Told Me I Was Holy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rhys finally meets the siren he will be training.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spanish text links to google translate, hover for my translations.

The next morning, Rhys arrived early, almost stumbling on his way out of the elevator. He looked toward the receptionist who was busy looking at the holoscreen before her, likely used to people falling over themselves around Jack. Just the thought of being alone with the big man made Rhys feel like he had two left feet and was gonna trip over himself. 

Taking a deep breath, he reminded himself he was here for a reason, checking the time on his cybernetic hand. Eight Forty-Five, fifteen minutes early, but better early than late and risk pissing Jack off. A shudder went through him thinking of what Jack did to those he pissed off, remembering distinctly the sight of someone from Propaganda floating by after Jack had airlocked them. 

Rhys inhaled deep once more, mustering all his courage before stepping towards the receptionist, looking at the little plaque with her name; “H-hi, Meg. I’m Rhys, Jack’s expecting me at nine.” He hated how shaky his voice sounded, blaming it on the nerves. 

Meanwhile the woman barely looked his way, eying him out of the corner of her eyes before gesturing to the doors to Jack’s office. “He’s expecting you, told me to let you in as soon as you got here. Careful though, I don’t know if he’s had his coffee yet.” Well  _ that _ was a comfort. He groaned inwardly, bracing himself for what was to come as he approached the doors, pushing them open. 

He was first greeted by the smell of strong coffee, seeing Jack standing by his desk a holoscreen up with what looked to be Tim’s face projected on. “I know you hate being shot out of the cannon, but seein’ as I’m gonna be a bit too busy to get you hooked up with a ride any other way, you’re gettin’ one of Hyperion’s cars. Don’t give me that look, christ, the sooner you find her the sooner you can come back up. And yes you can use a fast travel on your way back up.” It was followed by almost incoherent mutterings of something in a language Rhys wasn’t fluent in. “You heard me, Pumpkin. You’re lucky you’re cute.” 

As he drew closer, he could actually hear Tim’s voice. “Jack, I look exactly like you.” 

“Yeah, yeah. Just find the Firehawk and bring her in so we can get this plan underway, alright? And don’t take too long, I—” he seemed to almost clam up, catching sight of Rhys as his lips pressed in a firm line.

Tim likely caught the hint that someone else was in the room with Jack, “I know, I know. I’ll keep you updated, alright? And play nice with him, Jack, I love you.”

Rhys could have sworn that what part of Jack’s face under that mask that was visible had reddened a bit. “[ _Yo también te amo gatito_](https://translate.google.com/#es/en/Yo%20tambi%C3%A9n%20te%20amo%20gatito).” The siren cocked his head to the side at that, the language being more familiar now that he was closer to Jack to hear it clearly. 

He waited for the call to end, noticing how red Jack’s ears were, before remarking “I didn’t know you spoke Spanish.”

“Yeah, well, I’m full of surprises kiddo. There’s things about me not even my obsessive fanclub knows.” Okay, sore spot. Rhys wanted to say that he wasn’t  _ obsessed _ per-say, but Jack’s mood combined with how he looked blushing kept the siren from defending himself. “Anyway, you ready to meet her? We can talk about a few things on the way down.”

“Yeah about that, who is this person I’m training exactly?” Jack walked past him, leaving Rhys to jog to catch up. The CEO poured himself a cup of coffee, adding an unhealthy amount of sugar to the cup before turning heel and heading for the door. Rhys wanted to repeat his question but instead frowned as he followed Jack out of his office, watching the man give an almost dismissive wave to Meg who tried to remind him of some meetings. 

He had a feeling this wasn’t the first time Jack did something like this.

Upon entering the elevator, Rhys leaned with his back against the wall, arms crossed over his chest as he watched the other man. The siren had to suppress a grimace at the feeling, still a little tender, but at least he’d opted for a baggy shirt. “Well?”

Jack looked at him out of the corner of his eye as he pressed some buttons, putting in a security clearance. “It’s my daughter.”

Now that caught him of guard, Rhys almost fell over in surprise, gaping at the man. He hadn’t known about any  _ daughter _ and he’d been following the man’s career for years, since before the Lost Legion attack. Then again, despite some of his more extravagant displays, the man was very private and had a lot of secrets. 

Like what his face looked like under that mask.

“I’m warning you now, so much as one wrong move with her and you’re going out an airlock, understood?” Jack’s expression was dark, and Rhys felt his throat go dry, only able to nod his agreement. 

Well the fact that sirens were hunted made him understand why the man kept her a secret, but why hunt sirens himself? He’d have to ask Tim when he saw the man again. Instead he opted to stay silent, watching the other man in case there would be any outbursts. Meg did warn him about the man and coffee.

Unless…

“The thing about you being an ass before you have your coffee is a sick joke, isn’t it?”

That got a laugh out of Jack at least, which when he thought about it was different from Tim’s laugh. He’d have to file that away for later, it would help him tell them apart at least. “Oh man, yeah, Meg does it for laughs. Plus it tells us who’ll wet their pants upon seein’ me. Gotta say, I’m impressed you haven’t, all things considered. I mean, let's be honest kiddo, you’re either very brave or very stupid.”

‘Those things’ being the fact that Rhys was a siren, he guessed, and, well, who would think that a pencil pushing data miner would be ‘fearless’? Then again he had to be being a  _ siren _ working for Hyperion. Especially one who looked up to Jack. Giving his own little laugh, he looked out at the view of Pandora, “yeah. Guess the best way I can explain it is by saying I’ve seen some things.” A nonchalant shrug followed, pushing aside memories of watching the escape ship his parents were on get shot out of the sky by Lost Legion fighters.

He was thankful Jack didn’t press the issue at least, probably as the man had demons of his own. Instead Jack took a long drink of his coffee, staring at the numbers as they passed by on the screen above the door. While the silence was unnerving, it was better than dealing with  _ questions _ .

The rest of the ride went in relative silence with Rhys either staring out at the space around them, or watching Jack drink his coffee. If it unnerved Jack, he didn’t voice it and Rhys preferred it that way really, not wanting any confrontations about his wandering eyes. At least he was saved from the awkwardness of it all when the elevator stopped, the device scanning something on Jack for confirmation before the door opened. 

Rhys followed him through the short corridor to Jack’s penthouse, unsurprised by the glamorous decorations lining the walls. There were some more security measures for them to get through before they were inside the man’s home. Spacious, luxurious, and  _ very _ Jack. 

“Angel, honey, Papa’s home!” 

“[Mierda](https://translate.google.com/#es/en/mierda) !” There was the sound of something crashing, likely the siren being surprised by their arrival. Didn’t they warn her? Though Rhys was more worried about Jack who grimaced almost dropping his cup at the exclamation. Rhys moved closer, quickly taking it from him and setting it down on a counter. 

“We should check on that.” He gestured, breathing a sigh of relief as Jack nodded, moving towards the source of the noise. 

“Angel?”

“ _ Jodan _ !” 

Jack dragged a hand down his face, and Rhys had to stifle a laugh getting the feeling that the words coming from this girl weren’t exactly age appropriate. “Angel,  _ language _ .” 

They moved down the hall toward an open door which he guessed was the girls room. There she was sitting in the center of her room with the remnants of what he could only guess was an electrical fire and some high tech equipment. She didn’t look to be any older than thirteen at most, one side of her head shaved, her hair pulled back into a loose ponytail. 

Stepping past Jack, Rhys knelt before the mess, recognizing some components being from a disassembled CL4P-TP unit. “Are you trying to build something?” 

She raised her head proudly at that, “I can take apart and rebuild anything you give me. But I’m trying to build a communicator with a boosted signal and transmitter. With Tim on Pandora I want to help him,” there was a look sent Jack’s way that told Rhys that she didn’t like that she was left behind on Helios for this. “But I’m not strong enough to reach there with my powers. And I think I over charged it causing a small explosion.” 

Rhys looked over his shoulder as Jack sighed, the man leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed, both exasperation and affection clear in his eyes. “Angelita, princessa, you  _ know _ why you’re up here. I can’t risk your safety, and Tim’s actually got practice doing this. He’s hunting someone really dangerous.” 

A low growl left the teen which surprised Rhys. “I know, which is why I want to help. The fact that she hurt you like that.” A frustrated noise followed as she shoved some of the components away, crossing her legs and arms.

“I could help.” Rhys offered, looking over the components before her thoughtfully, ignoring the nudge from Jack’s foot likely telling him to  _ not encourage her _ . “But I need to help you control your powers so that the device doesn’t malfunction, alright?”

“Help me with my powers?” She frowned, eyes going wide as he pulled back his left sleeve to show tattoos identical to her own. “You’re either very brave or very stupid.” 

Rhys blinked a few times, before looking over his shoulder at Jack with a bored expression, rolling his eyes at how the man covered his mouth, shoulders shaking. “Well I can tell where she gets  _ that _ from.” The siren rolled his eyes, looking back to Angel. “And yeah, that’s not the first time I’ve heard that.  _ Anyway _ , I was asked to help train you.”

“[Gracias a Dios](https://translate.google.com/#es/en/Gracias%20a%20Dios) , I’m going to have to thank Tim when he gets back.” The relief in Angel’s voice made Rhys smile, though he couldn’t help but spare a look in Jack’s direction. He had to stifle a laugh at the annoyed look on the man’s face.

“What about me?”

Angel’s expression was neutral, almost unimpressed, “I’m going to take a guess that it was Tim’s idea and he had to fight to get you to agree.” 

Rhys couldn’t keep his shoulders from shaking, a stifled laugh getting through earning him a nudge from Jack. “I still agreed to it!” The man said indignantly, making Rhys laugh even more. 

“On what terms? You can babysit us? You going to set up a nanny cam so you can work and make sure your daughter is safe?” Oh yeah, she was definitely Jack’s kid.

“I can work from home.” The man mumbled.

That earned him a shooing motion from her, the young siren rolling her eyes. “Go on back to your office. You have work to do. He probably won’t be able to focus on  _ me _ if you’re here hovering over him like some mother hen.” 

“[Eso es lo que me preocupa](https://translate.google.com/#es/en/Eso%20es%20lo%20que%20me%20preocupa) .” Oh she looked unimpressed, picking up one of the fried circuits and tossing it at her father who almost comically shrunk away, leg pulled up and hands out to block it. “Okay, okay. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.” An ‘eyes on you’ gesture was made at Rhys before the man finally turned his back on them to leave, mumbling something incoherent under his breath. 

Once they were sure the man was out of earshot, Angel looked at Rhys with a calculating eye. “You’ll have to excuse my Dad, only kid plus I’m a siren, he’s a bit overprotective of me. Also, I’m gonna admit this only to you but, I’ve been practicing in secret. When he isn’t watching over me. I’ll hack into the cameras and put them on a loop so I can practice using my powers.” 

Rhys snorted at that, “guessed as much, you’re  _ Jack’s _ kid after all. So who’s this lady they’re after? All I’m getting is that she’s another siren.”

“Lilith, otherwise known as the Firehawk. She along with some others betrayed Dad back during the Lost Legion invasion,” there was a sharp intake of breath from Rhys, the invasion being a sore memory for the older siren. “Tim, along with the other vault hunters Dad hired, almost died because of what they did. But then when they unlocked the vault…” her voice got low, looking around as if she was checking if her father was anywhere near by. “There-there’s a reason Dad wears that mask, she punched him and—there was a lot of blood—I wasn’t there for it, Dad would never let me go anywhere that dangerous, but Tim told me about it one time after he’d taken a bunch of painkillers.” 

“I’m sorry,” Rhys’ voice was soft, yet at the same time that explained the change in Jack. He hadn’t known the man really well but he had been interning in the Programming department before the invasion, he’d seen Jack in passing. Jack hadn’t been a violent person, he’d been a pleasure to be around in fact.

Betrayal, violence, what Angel was telling him was enough to explain just why the man had changed so much.

“So what’s your plan?” He looked to her, full of determination, ready to help set things right.

“I want to help Tim lure the Firehawk out of hiding, and I have an idea of how to do that…” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some research into Spanish swears tells me that 'jodan' means 'fuck'. Most of my Spanish is provided either by friends, internet, or google translate.


End file.
